Floor.



PATBNTED SEPT. 12, 1905. W. N. WIGHT.

FLOOR APPLIQATIOR FILED JULY 22, 1904.

By Aftomeys;

z z 1 z I I r ture.

WILLIAM N. WIGHT, WESTWOOD, NEW JERSEY.

FLOOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 12, 1905.

Application filed July 22, 1904. Serial No. 217,737.

To alZ whom it may concern:

Be it known thatI, WILLIAM N. WIGHT, a citizen of the United States, residing in Westwood, in the county of'Bergen and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Floors, of which the following is a specification.

My invention aims to provide a floor which is light and strong and which can be cheaply built and which is specially adapted to be cast or molded of concrete, the whole floor being substantially a monolith of concrete and being preferably also cast in a monolith with the adjacent walls. This style of floor is specially adapted for cottages or small dwellings, and it is within my invention to use it in any style of buildings. It gives great strength from a comparatively small volume of concrete. Accordingly it is very light. scientifically designed to give the greatest strength at the points of maximum shearing and tensile strain. It is a good fire-resistant and also cold-resistant. It also transmits very little sound. Various other advantages are referred to in detail hereinafter.

A special process of casting or molding the ribs or beams is provided whereby they can be formed very quickly and of a shape well adapted to meet the conditions of use.

The accompanying drawings illustrate an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 1 is a section of a floor in a plane transverse to the strengthening ribs or beams. Fig. 2 is a plan illustrating the system of molds preferably employed. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a corner of the building finishedto the level of the top of the floor. showing the mold partly broken away. Fig. 5 is a slightly-modified detail.

Referring to the embodiment of the invention illustrated, the floor comprises a concrete plate A, on the upper side of which is a series of concrete ribs or beams B B B which are cast or molded at the same time with the plate A or are cemented directly thereto, so as to constitute, with the plate, substantially a monolithic struc- Preferably wire ties C (either plain or corrugated) are embedded in the plate and the ribs, so as to unite the two more firmly. Preferably, also, a metallic reinforcing D is embedded in the plate to strengthen it against tensile strains, and the ties 0 pass under said metallic reinforcing, so as to connect it to the ribs. The metallic reinforcing may, for example, be in the form of sheets of ready-made,

It isfine, flexible wire fabric, the longitudinal wires of the fabric being straight and the transverse wires being crimped or bent around the straight wires at intersection-points and bound thereto. Where a single course of reinforcing fabric is used, the sheets are laid to extend in the same direction as the ribs. Where extra strength is desired, a second course of the fabric may be used, in which case the sheets preferably run in a direction transverse to that of the first course. The special fabric referred to is described in detail in my Patent No. 7 32,482, dated J une 30, 1903. The ribs may also be reinforced, as by means of rods E, extending longitudinally thereof, or by means of a grillage of wire such as is described in my application for patent, Serial No. 150,270, filed March 30, 1903. The ties O unite the two systems of reinforcing D and E either by connecting directly with each of these systems or by being embedded in the concrete immediately adjacent thereto.

The width of the ribs increases toward the center of the floor or'panel, so as to provide for the" usual strains increasing toward the center. This is a very simple manner of pro viding for the lack of uniformity of the strains, a wide rib being as easily molded as a narrow one. For the same reason this floor adapts itself especially to the running of extra strong ribs at any desired point, (as, for example, where a partition is to be supported on the floor.) The drawings show the widest central ribs B provided with extra reinforcing in the form of an increased number of longitudinal wires or rods E. The construction described is also well adapted for the application of a board flooring or other top 'finish. For example, fioor-sleepersF maybe nailed or spiked to the sides of the ribs, with their upper edges approximately flush with the top faces of the ribs, and the flooring-boards Gr may be nailed directly to the sleepers F. The spaces between the ribs are preferably filled with a dry granular filling H, such as cinders, which. obstructs the passage of sound or moisture and which is a good non-conductor of heat. Any suitable material, preferably incombustible, may be used for this filling.

Preferably the beams or ribs B B B are made of extra width at their ends. The ends of the ribs are the points of maximum shearing strain, and by designing the rib in this way a more economical distribution of the total quantity of material in the rib is effected. Furthermore, the mold or false work is more easily removed without injury to the concrete with such a shape of rib. The drawings show also of concrete and cast or molded at the same time with the floor or at least with the adjacent portion thereof. The concrete used for the walls and also for the floor is preferably a concrete of cinders or of coke-breeze or other light incombustible material and is made as porous as possible. The reinforcing D preferably extends also into the wall, as indicated at D, so as to increase the strength of the connection between the floor and the wall and so as also to bind together the opposite walls by means of the substantially continuous tie of reinforcing fabric D running from one wall to the other through the floor.

In building houses with my improved floor any suitable style of mold may be provided. As shown in Fig. 4, a centering of boards M supports the floor, while inside and outside boards N O inclose the concrete for forming the walls. The drawing shows the Walls and floor cast in a monolith extending to the level of the tops of the floor-ribs. The molds or false work for forming the ribs comprise boards P, extending throughout the greater part of the length of the ribs and inwardly beveled at their ends, and extensions thereof Q, fastened on the outer faces of the boards P, so as to give the desired increase in width to form the end portions J of the ribs. Between the ribs the boards N form the inner faces of the walls L. R represents struts for spacing and holding the rib mold-pieces P in place. The mold pieces or boards P are held up by means of pins S with pointed ends, which extend down to and rest upon the centeringboards M. The pins S support the boards P at such a height above the intended top of the plate A as to permit the concrete to be forced out to form the enlargements K at its base. This increases the resistance to tensile strain, as explained, and forms a stronger union between the rib and the plate A. Furthermore, such a false work is very easily removed from the concrete without injury to the latter. The same feature of strengthening the connection between the rib and the wall occurs with the enlarged end portion J of the rib, and the illustrated mold for forming the same is veryeasily removed without injury to the concrete. The floor described is much stronger and lighter than would be a plain slab, commonly called a flat arch. It requires only about three-fifths as much concrete to attain the same strength as a flat arch and has also the great advantage of less weight. It is a better fire-resistantandcold-resistantandmorenoiseproof than a flat arch.

It. is not essential that each of the detailed features be included; but when they are all included they make an admirable floor designed for the greatest strength with economy of material and adapted to be built by very rapid and cheap processes.

The advantage of building the floor and wall in a monolith with an embedded m tallic connection between them is illustrated in connection with a flat arch A in Fig. 5. One advantage of this construction is that as soon as it is built up to the level of the top of the first floor it forms practically a small house with warm walls, and by inserting temporary doors and windows a fire can be built inside and the inside work can be carried on in the severest weather. The improved floor embodies the important principle of saving material from the upper part of the floor, where the compressive strains come. The compressive strength of concrete is so much in excess of its tensile strength that it is not necessary to make the upper part of the floor continuous. Thus for the same total cross-section or quantity of material the depth of the floor is much greater than that of a flat arch. As the strength of the floor is proportioned to the square of the depth, this advantage is very great. The filling, which is packed or tamped between the ribs, also has a considerable resistance to compressive strains. The floorstringers also assist in this action. The use of the floor-stringers shown simplifies the leveling of the floor, as they may be easily adjusted or hewed to the desired level.

It is understood that in the preferred process of building this structure the centering M is supported in place and the mold-bars P, Q, and M are suitably positioned thereon. The floor is then built, commencing at one side and building to its full depth as the work proceedsthat is, building the plate A and the ribs B of their full thickness at one operation.

Any suitable means of holding the various mold-bars in place may be added.

The rods E, being in the upper part of the structure, are necessarily subjected to compressive strains, and thus make up for the deficiency in concrete in the upper portion of the floor. In fact, it is because of this featu re of a metal reinforce running along near the upper plane of the rib that the sectional area of the concrete can be so greatly reduced. It will be understood that this reinforce for compression runs in straight lines and in a horizontal plane above the neutral axis and as near as possible to the upper surface of the rib. It is not necessarily of circular crosssection, as illustrated. The connection of the upper or compression member E with the tension-rods E and the wire-netting reinforce D forms in each rib a sort of metal truss.

Though I have described with great par ticularity of detail an embodiment of my invention, yet it is not to be understood that the invention is limited to the specific embodiment disclosed. Various modifications thereof in details and in the arrangement and combination of the parts may be made by those skilled in the art without departure from the invention.

What I claim is 1. A floor including in combination a concrete plate and a series of concrete ribs above said plate and forming therewith substantially a monolithic structure, metallic reinforcing embedded in said plate, metallic reinforcing embedded in said ribs, and ties uniting the two systems of reinforcing.

2. A floor including in combination a concrete plate and a series of concrete ribs above said plate and forming therewith substantially a monolithic structure, the center ribs being wider than those at the sides of the floor.

3. A floor including in combination a series of concrete beams or ribs, and floor-sleepers laid directly upon and attached to said beams.

4. A concrete-floor beam or rib made of extra width at its ends.

5. A floor including in combination a concrete plate, a series of concrete ribs above said plate, and a compression reinforce for the upper portions of said ribs.

6. The process which consists in casting concrete between mold sides raised above the supporting-base, whereby the concrete spreads at the base to produce a greater width at such point.

7. The process which consists in casting a concrete-floor plate with ribs thereupon, the ribs being cast between mold sides raised above the top of the plate whereby the concrete of the ribs spreads to produce a greater width at the point of connection with the plate.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed myname in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM N. WIGHT.

Witnesses:

DOMINGO A. USINA, FRED WHITE. 

